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The Great War
The Great War was a global war centered in Europe that began on 8 August 1905 and lasted until 9 September 1910 when an armistice ended the fighting. There were more than 4 million military deaths with over 40 million civilian deaths caused by disease, genocide, and reprisal killings. The economic impact of the conflict left participants bankrupt or nearly bankrupt as a result of excessive war goods needed to be produced for use by the military and the conscription of most adult male workers. The belligerents of the conflict divided into two main sides. The Reactionary Powers, which formed shortly before the war to quell the spread of Communism, and the Internationale, an alliance of Communist powers. The main theaters of the war took place in Ukraine and Ottoman Romania in Europe as well as heavy fighting in Africa, Australia/Oceania, and Southeast Asia. Minor fighting also took place in Northern Europe, specifically in Germany, Poland, and Western Russia, and the Middle East. The war also saw heavy naval combat with large naval battles being fought in the Atlantic Ocean. The large casualties of the war are attributed to advances in military technology far outpacing the tactics used. Weapons such as poison gas devastated armies that had little to no protection against it. On 8 August 1905, the Soviet Union declared war on Ukraine when it was discovered that Ukraine was attempting to politically distance itself from the communist Soviet Union in favor of the Ottoman Empire, a constitutional monarchy. As a result of the attack the Ottoman Empire joined the war in defense of Ukraine. Fellow conservative government of the United Kingdom and Papal Italy joined their ally the Ottoman Empire in hopes to contain Communism. Communist Australia and the Soviet puppet state of Finland were then rallied to the Communist cause. The Ottoman Army was slower to mobilize than the Soviet Army and as a result Ukraine was overwhelmed within a year of combat and a puppet government was installed until the Internationale defeat in 1910. As Ukraine fell the fighting moved into Ottoman Romania by mid-1906 where the Ottoman forces rallied and began a counterattack into Romania. The war was decided when the Battle of Iasi ended in an Ottoman victory, which lasted roughly four years and resulted in the destruction of the majority of the Soviet military. Simultaneously the Australian army, despite victories against the British in Africa and Australia, began to desert and by the end of the war was a fraction of the size of its original number. With the destruction of most of their armies, the Internationale were forces to agree to an armistice. As a result of the Treaty of Bucharest and the Treaty of Danzig the Bolshevik parties of all Internationale powers were forced to disband and democratic elections take place in their respective countries. Russia was forced to cede German speaking territory to the North German Federation, which joined the war in 1909, and pay harsh reparations to all victorious powers. Australia was forced to give up most of its holdings in Asia and Africa and also pay reparations. Finland did not pay reparations but was actually funded by the Reactionary Powers to re-fit its military to combat a possible revolution as elections took place. The fallout of the war resulted in enormous liberal revolutions on both sides and a civil war in the Ottoman Empire. Background Rise of Communism Communism gained traction worldwide by the late 1880s as several governments began to fall to Communist Revolutions. The first major country to adopt Communism was the Free States of America, however a liberal revolt put a democracy back in place.. Australia was next to fall as a Communist revolution broke out in Australia itself and her colonies. Melbourne fell and Australia was reformed into a communist dictatorship. Russia then fell to Communism in a time of great unrest, the Bolsheviks were able to take Petrograd without a fight and they placed themselves in power. Uruguay and El Salvador also fell to Communism in the late 1890s, as communism was funded overseas. In an effort to connect all communist nations, the Soviet Union and Australia, as the two communist great powers in the world, held the first Internationale in March of 1900, a conference where it was decided that both powers would try to spread Communism even by war. The first target of the Internationale was the North German Federation, which was forced to submit to Soviet arms after bloody conflict, a puppet government was installed until intervention by Reactionary Powers restored the former government. Reactionary Response Shocked by the violent spread of Communism the Ottoman Empire and historical enemy the United Kingdom allied to contain the spread of Communism. By late 1900 Italy had joined the reactionary alliance. The first act by reactionary forces was to thwart Communism in South America. The Ottoman Empire sent a large naval force to Uruguay to support a successful coup in July of 1902 to restore the democracy. The next move by the reactionary forces was to restore the 'legitimate' government of North Germany. The North German Counterrevolutionary War broke out on 11 November 1904 when Ottoman and British ships began a blockade of the North German coast when the coup attempt was foiled by the Communists. Italy dispatched a large force to invade Germany through France. The North German People's Army put up resistance in Saarbrucken but was defeated by Italian forces. With the Italian Army unopposed the Communist government disbanded and the previous North German government was restored. This counterrevolutionary war launched by the Reactionary Powers alerted the Internationale who began building up their forces in preparation for a total war. Prelude The Pasha Dispatch Ukraine, despite being a Constitutional Monarchy, was still firmly within the political sphere of the Soviet Union. The pre-Communist government of Russia had a long standing alliance with Ukraine and fought side by side in many wars against Austria-Hungary and various German states. However, the aggressive Soviet internationalism made Ukraine seek other allies, which it found in the Ottoman Empire. The Ottoman's, fearing Ukraine would fall to Communism, made a secret military alliance with Ukraine in which the Ottomans would defend Ukraine from any Communist invasion. The Pasha Dispatch was sent 1 August 1905 by the Ottoman Sultan, Enver Pasha, which stated that Ukraine was to expel all Communist ambassadors from the country and then sign an open military alliance with the Ottoman Empire. However, this dispatch was intercepted by Soviet spies and the Soviet Union preemptively declared war on Ukraine on August 27th to supersede Ottoman plans. The Ottoman Empire then declared war on the Soviet Union and began to mobilize. Ethnic Cleansing in the Soviet Union With the Communist government firmly in power, the Soviet government turned toward ethnicity it deemed 'disloyal'. Ethnic minorities such as Ukrainians and Germans were sent to concentration camps where many were killed by the Soviet government. Rumors of these camps reached Ukraine, but these rumors were purposefully ignored by the government as to not anger the Soviet Union. Reactionary Alliances The Reactionary powers of the Ottoman Empire, United Kingdom, and Italy knew a war against the Internationale was inevitable as a result of the breakout of open warfare when attempting to topple Communism in Germany. A secret agreement with France was made to allow troops to move through in the event of a war with the Communists. The restored North German government also agreed to join the war at a later date when her armistice with the Soviet Union became null. Austria-Hungary also agreed to not allow the Communists refuge in her borders despite being historical enemies of Italy and the Ottoman Empire. European Theater Invasion of Ukraine''' (August 1905 - May 1906) Main Article: Invasion of Ukraine The Soviet Army was prepared for the war and had deployed its armies accordingly to swiftly invade Ukraine and sweep to the capital of Kiev. The Ukrainian Army, and several hundred thousand Ottoman soldiers attempted to resist the Communist advance but they were outnumbered roughly 5 to 1. The Ottoman Army cancelled all further attacks into Ukraine and pulled back into Ottoman Romania. The Ukrainian Army attempted to retreat along with the Ottoman forces but was cut off by Soviet forces. The Ukrainian Army, and several thousand Ottoman stragglers, were annihilated in Battle of Olviopol on 4 May 1906 which ended Reactionary resistance in Ukraine. A Communist Ukrainian puppet state was then set up by the Internationale and forced to submit to an armistice. Some Ukranian resistance would continue into December, but those forces were soon destroyed or deserted. Communist forces then began to pursue the retreating Ottomans into Romania and began building defenses in the area. Ottoman Counterattack (July 1906 - February 1907) As Communist forces swarmed into Ukraine the Ottoman forces began to retreat across the border into Ottoman territory. Ottoman forces took several weeks to regroup and bring up reinforcements. By July, Ottoman forces began attacking forces of the Internationale in Romania and Western Ukraine. The first major Ottoman success came on July 18th where the Australian Expeditionary Force in Ukraine was destroyed in the Battle of Izmail. Despite the Australian forces only making up a small amount of Communist forces in Europe, and the battle not being particularly large in scale, morale was boosted among Ottoman as one enemy had been defeated. The next Ottoman success came at the Battle of Botosani where Soviet forces attacked a half million strong Ottoman force with one million of their own. Ottoman reinforcements swarmed into the battle and the Soviet force was forced to retreat South. The Ottomans geared up for a large attack on the Russian force in Romania as they consolidated into a single large force. Battle of Iasi '(March 1907 - January 1910) ''Main Article: Battle of Iasi The Soviets regrouped near the Romanian town of Iasi in Ottoman Romania. Simultaneously, the Ottomans brought up more reinforcements and began to move in on Soviet forces. In March the Battle of Iasi broke out and would last almost three years and result in over 1.3 million deaths on both sides. Soviet forces dug an intricate trench network and Ottoman forces were slaughtered in their initial attacks. Ottoman forces then dug a similar network of trench defenses and likewise annihilated Soviet counterattacks. The Ottomans however stayed mostly on the offensive and for years advanced meter by meter pushing the Soviets back slightly with each attack. At the cost of over 800,000 dead, the Ottoman forces made a breakthrough in the Winter of 1909-1910. The starving and outnumbered Soviet forces surrendered On January 18th. With the destruction of over 95% of Communist forces in Europe as a result of Iasi, and the invasion of the Western Soviet Union by Italy and North Germany, the Internationale signed an armistice and awaited the harsh conditions as a defeated party. Invasion of the Soviet Union (March 1909 - May 1909) Even though Italy was a member of the Reactionary powers, she did not commit her military forces until the North German Federation entered the war on the Reactionary side in March of 1909. Italy and North Germany then began a joint invasion of the Western Soviet Union and was able to push deep into the Russian heartland by May. The invasion met no resistance from Soviet forces as they were currently engaged in Romania fighting the Ottoman Empire. The only major engagement of the invasion was a naval battle in the Gulf of Riga where the Russian and Finnish Navy was destroyed by North German ships. The invasion forces, particularly the North Germans, committed many reprisal killings on ethnic Russians as a result of Soviet ethnic cleansing of local Germans in majority German areas of the Soviet Union. The Soviet Union had no means to fight the invasion so Soviet and North German forces signed a separate peace and dictated terms in the Treaty of Danzig, which resulted in severe Soviet territory and monetary loss. African and Pacific Theater British Invasion of Australian Zanzibar (March 1906 - March 1910) For the beginning of the war, belligerent territories in Africa were relatively untouched. The governors of Ottoman Somalia and Australian Zanzibar signed an agreement far before the war in 1902 stating that they would not invade with colonial armies in the event of war between their respective countries. However, the British landed an invasion force in early 1906 and Australian colonial forces were assembled. Australian forces attacked the British invasion force at Zanzibar resulting in a complete British rout. Over 100,000 British troops were killed at the cost of less than 2,000 Australian lives. British forces would retreat westward and would not return until 1909. When the British did return in March of 1909 they met with similar failure as they did in 1906. The British invasion force was again repulsed and by Early 1910 had retreated from the area again. Despite British failures in Africa, considerable Australian forces were tied down which could have been used to reinforce Europe or Australia. Invasion of Australia (November 1906 - September 1910) In order to knock Australia out of the war, the United Kingdom invaded the Australian mainland in November of 1906. The first engagement ended in British defeat at the Battle of Gibson's Desert where the Australian home units defeat the British invasion force. After this battle the British reinforced, negating Australia's ability to attack with reasonable chance of success. Much of the Southern half of Australia was occupied. Australian forces however were able to catch a British force unsupported at Wiluna and defeated them causing 18,000 casualties. In January of 1910 with, Ottoman forces victorious at Iasi and the Soviet Union effectively knocked out of the war, Ottoman forces began landing in British occupied Australia. Ottoman units landed in force gearing up for an attack, but widespread mutiny broke out in among Australian soldiers. Most of the Australian army had deserted by September and could not effectively resist invasion. Australia then submitted to an armistice and like its Soviet ally awaited harsh peace terms. Southeast Asia (January 1906 - July 1907) The United Kingdom opened up the Southeast Asian front with the invasion of Australian colonies on the Malaysian peninsula and in Indochina. An Australian force of 15,000 capitulated to a 90,000 strong British force at Kuantan in January 1906 and would be foreshadowing to British success in the area. British forces would continue to meet trace resistance from Australian forces until the Battle of Kampot in July of 1907. The last major Australian force in Southeast Asia was assaulted by British forces and destroyed. With the Australian defeat at Kampot the Southeast Asian theater was effectively closed. Naval Combat Atlantic Theater Reactionary forces had an extreme advantage in naval power throughout the war, but the Australians maintained a sizable and naval force which operated throughout the war, despite losses. Most of the Australian fleet was destroyed by the Ottoman Navy off the coast of the Canary Islands in April 1907 when attempting to reinforce Europe via the Mediterranean. Baltic Sea Considerable naval combat by the North German, Soviet, and Finnish fleets also took place late in the war. The severely outdated Soviet and Finnish navy were soundly destroyed by the small, but modern, North German fleet in the Gulf of Riga in 1909. Results Treaty of Danzig The Internationale and the North German Federation signed a separate peace on 1 May 1909. German and Italian forces were advancing deep into Soviet territory meeting no resistance and the Soviets agreed to German terms despite how harsh as the Soviets could in no way fight on a second front. The Soviets were forced to give up all German majority territory to the North German Federation and pay extensive reparations. Treaty of Bucharest Main Article: Treaty of Bucharest The Treaty of Bucharest officially ended the war between the Internationale and the Reactionary Powers and was signed on 4 April 1911. The Bolshevik Party that was in power in the Soviet Union was to dissolve and democratic elections were to begin in Russia immediately. Russia was also forced to pay war reparations to all Reactionary powers and release an independent Poland and Slovakia from its territory. Likewise, Australia was forced to disband its Communist party, hold elections, and pay reparations. On top of this, many Australian colonial holdings were either transferred to the United Kingdom or given independence. Finland did not have to pay reparations like the other belligerents but instead funded by the Reactionary powers to rearm the new Finnish democracy to prevent a revolution from succeeding. Aftermath Russia Russia delved into chaos when the war was lost. liberal, fascist, and socialist revolts took place simultaneously all vying for power. Ultimately the liberals were able to win the election and hold their power in Russia but many regions remained out of their power. Russia was left with much less territory than it had as the Soviet Union as it lost its German, Polish, and Slovakian territory. Russia subsequently entered a depression as the economy had collapsed not long before the war ended. Australia Australia suffered a liberal revolt during the war as enemy armies invaded the mainland. Many soldiers deserted the Australian Army and went to go join the liberal revolt which managed to take power within a month of the war ending. Australia receded to a local power as it lost her colonial holdings. Australia's economy was able to stay somewhat stable by end of the war as Australia did not dip into depression. Ottoman Empire Despite being victorious in the war, the Ottoman Empire entered an economic and civil crisis as the war was closing. During the war, the Arabs of the Ottoman Empire began a minor guerrilla war, blowing up railroads and sabotaging factories. This activity went mostly ignored by the Ottoman government as the war was the priority. Liberal agitation also increased towards the end of the war as the populace became weary with the governments conservative war policy. The Ottoman government began to pass minor reforms to appease the liberal population while the war was going on. All adult males were conscripted and many factories were closed due to lack of workers or profit dipping the Empire into an economic depression at the end of the war. Almost all of the Ottoman monetary reserve was exhausted and the government was only just barely able to balance expenses. Soon agitation came to a climax and a widespread liberal revolt devolved into the Ottoman Civil War. The war resulted in a victory for the Monarchy but at the cost of giving up most of its powers to appease the defeated liberals. Ukraine With the expulsion of the Communists from Ukraine came the uncovering of the evidence for the Ukrainian Holocaust. The Soviet Union had been ethnically cleansing Ukrainians within its own borders several years before the war. During the Invasion and occupation of Ukraine by the Communists many Ukrainians were rounded up as 'political prisoners' and massacred by Internationale forced. Over 10 million civilians were killed directly by the Soviet Union with much more killed by indirect causes such as famine, withholding of medicine to fight disease, etc. With the hatred for Communism that came as a result of the Holocaust Fascism began to rise to prominence in Ukraine. In 1911 Ukrainian black-shirts took over Kiev and established a fascist dictatorship to rule over the country. North Germany Federation With the liberation of German speaking regions of the Soviet Union the idea of the united Germany became the primary topic of Germans in Europe. With the Russians a shadow of their former self a power vacuum formed in Central Europe to be filled by the North Germans. United Kingdom The United Kingdom suffered constant disaster against the Australians during the war. The ineptitude of the British military commanders led to widespread nationalist revolts in the British Empire. The United Kingdom was forced to grant independence to countries like Ireland as they realized they could not put down these revolts without immense bloodshed. Italy Italy's economy flourished immediately after the war. Italy suffered very little casualties as no major resistance opposed them in their only campaign of the war. The reparations from the defeated parties stimulated the Italian economy and Italy rose to great power status. = __FORCETOC__